The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball
Chapter 544 - 268: Mechanical Descent of God_2

Chapter 544: Chapter 268: Mechanical Descent of God_2

The Lakers continued their relentless pursuit to close the score gap.

Hansen, in the frontcourt, continued to control the ball, and this time, after being double-teamed, he passed the ball to Bargnani.

After Conningham entered the game, the Cavaliers had more offensive space on the court, leading to more opportunities for open three-pointers.

Unfortunately, Bargnani missed the shot.

Luckily, it was a long rebound, and Hansen accurately anticipated the landing spot and grabbed the offensive rebound, immediately going for a second chance that drew a defensive foul from Kobe.

Hansen made both free throws, helping stabilize the situation for the Cavaliers.

Turning back, he switched to defending Kobe.

He successfully followed Kobe’s off-ball movement, but the Lakers’ offensive drive did not stop there.

James and Frye initiated a pick-and-roll, then James broke through and assisted the pick-and-pop Frye for a three-pointer.

Hansen continued to control the ball, this time deliberately looking for Tucker.

His timing on the pass was excellent, giving Tucker a great chance for a corner three.

However, Tucker, too, missed the three-pointer.

The Cavaliers missed back-to-back three-pointers from the outside.

This time, James grabbed the defensive rebound, and the Lakers initiated a fast break, with Lin Shuhao scoring a layup after receiving a long pass from James.

54-62, the gap was reduced to single digits.

Malone called for a timeout.

The atmosphere in the arena was unsettled, as nobody had expected such a fierce effort from the Lakers to close the gap in the second half.

"The Cavaliers’ exterior shooting is off, and that’s not good news for them," Barkley immediately recognized the key change in the situation.

He played both against and alongside Olajuwon, and was familiar with the One Star and Four Shooters system.

The biggest drawback of this system was that when the exterior shooting was off, the team’s scoring stability would plummet.

"The Lakers’ defensive counterattacks in the second half are incredibly fast; the Cavaliers must maintain their efficiency on offense," O’Neal analyzed as well.

However, his statement contradicted what Barkley said; how could the Cavaliers ensure offensive efficiency after their exterior shots were off?

The next period would be a significant test for the Cavaliers.

After the timeout, Malone made personnel adjustments, with Hawes and JR replacing Bargnani and Tucker.

This time, Hansen called for the ball up high, backing down Kobe.

Instead of continuing to rely on outside shooting, Hansen opted for a more secure way of attacking.

After jumping to catch the ball, he reset his pivot foot and launched into a post-up play.

He didn’t make many moves to draw the defense but quickly turned and shot a fadeaway.

Kobe lunged forward in an attempt to block, but Hansen’s jump height and fadeaway amplitude were significant, so the interference was minimal.

"Swish!"

Hansen scored over Kobe’s defense one-on-one.

This season, due to the team’s tactical system, he had been focusing more on facing the basket, but his post-up skills were still sharp.

Quicken Loans Arena was instantly filled with the cheers of the fans.

Exterior shooting off?

They still had Hansen!

"Defense! Defense!"

The chant from the fans followed suit.

However, the cheers soon died down as James back-posted JR and turned to drive to the basket, drawing a defensive foul from Hawes.

Facing the booing from the entire arena, James made both free throws.

After the halftime break, the Lakers also made tactical adjustments; whoever Hansen defended, they would have someone else initiate the offense.

This strategy mirrored what the Cavaliers had deployed against Kobe in the first half.

Or more precisely, if you looked closely, you would find the Lakers and the Cavaliers had somewhat similar team patterns this season, both with weaker insides and dual-core drives.

Hansen continued to control the ball in the frontcourt, back-posting Kobe.

This time, as James moved in from the strong side to double team,

Hansen didn’t wait for James to help defend and instead turned around toward the free-throw line, pulling up for another fadeaway shot against Kobe.

"Swish!"

Hansen demonstrated his terrifying scoring stability by hitting another mid-range shot!

"Don’t forget the Cavaliers still have Hansen, that’s Hansen!" Barkley excitedly shouted from the commentator’s booth.

Malone was also excitedly punching the air on the sidelines.

Hansen’s offensive choice was very smart.

He didn’t opt to force his way through to the basket to ensure security, knowing that with the Cavaliers’ current outside shooting form, pushing inside would surely result in a double team.

The value of the mid-range became apparent at this moment.

Once again, the arena erupted with the fans’ chants for defense, and James continued to drive to the basket, but this time, Hansen chose to help defend.

James passed the ball to Varejao, whose layup was blocked by Hawes, and then it was outright confiscated by Hansen!

Hansen got the ball and tossed it over to Irving, who broke away for a fast break, gliding to score the layup and bringing his total to 31 points tonight.

56-68.

With Hansen’s performance on both offense and defense, the Cavaliers had stabilized the situation!

However, the Lakers still hadn’t given up. Kobe, seizing the chance when Hansen went to help on defense, found an opening, received a pass from James, and hit a mid-range jumper from the free-throw line.

After the shot, Kobe and James high-fived with fierce expressions.

Perhaps this was the moment the Lakers found the reason they could make a comeback in the second half.

Kobe had welcomed James’s arrival, just like he had stated in the summer; he wanted to use the remaining years of his career to make a final charge at the championship.

He wanted to surpass 5 with 6, he wanted to win!

Hansen continued to handle the ball with his back to the basket, but this time the Lakers chose to double-team him early.

One Star and Four Shooters had natural spacing, which provided the basis for Hansen to keep attacking from mid-range.

But now, the Lakers completely disregarded the Cavaliers’ perimeter, focusing all their energies on swarming Hansen.

Hansen chose to pass the ball.

This time, it was Hawes who received it.

Hawes’s three-pointer from the perimeter... was still off!

The Cavaliers’ performance from the perimeter in the second half felt analogous to the "history" of the Rockets’ playoff game against the Warriors.

It was as if the basket had a lid on it.

But!

Just as the basketball smashed into the rim and bounced high, Hansen also appeared in the broadcast frame!

After splitting off, Hansen stayed under the basket jockeying for position with Kobe, anticipated the trajectory of the ball, and leapt over Kobe.

"Boom!"

Grabbing the rebound, Hansen finished with a one-handed slam!

Kobe watched, wide-eyed, as Hansen completed the dunk right in front of him.

Moreover, he watched as Hansen, after the dunk, hung from the rim with one hand, swinging around once.

At this moment, his feelings must have been complex because back when he was wearing the number 8 jersey, he too had soared and swooped like Hansen.

The Quicken Loans Arena first went quiet, then erupted into cheers, and soon the cheers turned into a uniform chant.

"Who is your daddy!"

This was a chant exclusively belonging to Cleveland fans, a chant exclusively for Hansen!

The second half saw Kobe and James performing significantly better than in the first, even displaying their full capabilities.

But, as Hansen had put it, 23 plus 24, it was less than 77!

This chant boosted the morale of the Cavaliers hugely, and Kobe, attempting to shoot once more, had his shot disrupted with help from Conningham.

Hansen moved to the three-point line to handle the ball.

Despite the roaring atmosphere, his mind wasn’t overwhelmed by emotions.

The Lakers were now thoroughly double-teaming him, and with the Cavaliers’ shooters still off, playing with his back to the basket was no longer a good offensive option.

After he motioned for his teammate Hawes to pull further from the top of the arc to the weaker side, he dribbled left and right facing Kobe.

Just as he saw the Lakers ready for another early double-team, he suddenly dropped into a fake, forcing Kobe to slide back half a step, then he squared up and chose to pull up for a three-point shot directly.

Kobe, even when he rushed up, was clearly too late.

Hansen’s shot had rhythm.

Although shooting slumps can be contagious, it was obvious from the earlier mid-range shots that his stroke wasn’t affected.

Or rather, Hansen’s scoring reliability was notably more consistent than anyone else’s at the moment.

The basketball carved a backward-spinning parabola in the air.

"Swish!"

Finally, it plummeted into the net like a cannonball.

58-73!

The margin on the court had once again reached 15 points!

Turning to see this three-pointer, Kobe’s expression was slightly helpless.

Not far off, James removed his mouthguard, shaking his head.

The Lakers called a timeout.

The LED display in the arena showed Hansen’s performance in the third quarter.

for 4 from the field, 1 for 1 from three, 2 for 2 from the line, 11 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block.

While other Cavaliers struggled to find their rhythm, he single-handedly halted the Lakers.

It was a performance that couldn’t help but remind people of the steamy, fiery Hansen from last season’s Game 6 of the finals.

Hansen, a mechanical embodiment of divinity!